New Delhi: The Delhi high court on July 5 asked the Central Bureau of Investigation to respond to Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s bail plea in the excise policy corruption case it registered recently.
Justice Neena Bansal Krishna has listed the case for hearing on July 17 and issued a notice to the CBI.
The Hindu reported that senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, representing Kejriwal, said the AAP leader is not a flight risk and not a terrorist.
Singhvi highlighted that the CBI only arrested him after he got bail in the Enforcement Directorate’s money laundering case over the same issue.
Senior advocate N. Hariharan also appeared for Kejriwal, according to LiveLaw.
The CBI moved to arrest Kejriwal hours before the Supreme Court was to hear Kejriwal’s plea against the Delhi high court staying the bail given to him by a vacation court, on June 26. The Aam Aadmi Party national convenor was incarcerated then.
Also read: ‘Judge Who Stayed Kejriwal’s Bail Kin of ED Counsel’: 150 Lawyers Express Objections to CJI
The CBI’s case is that the AAP government under Kejriwal granted liquor licenses to certain traders in exchange for bribes.
The CBI’s arrest and consequent remand makes it possible for Kejriwal to be kept behind bars even if he secures bail in the ED’s case.
Both the ED and the CBI are central agencies under the control of the Union government where the Bharatiya Janata Party is in power. BJP and AAP are political rivals.
On June 20, the trial court which granted bail to Kejriwal had said the ED was acting with bias against the chief minister. Vacation judge Niyay Bindu had said the ED did not provide enough evidence for the chief minister’s incarceration.
For the CBI, advocate D.P. Singh said that Kejriwal should not have directly approached the high court without appealing to a trial court.
The Delhi high court had on July 2 issued notice to CBI on Kejriwal’s plea challenging his arrest and his remand by the CBI. This will also be heard on July 17.
